Albany organizations partner for Code Blue

From left, David Poach, admissions director for the Capital City Rescue Mission; Liz Hitt, executive director of the Homeless and Travelers Aid Society; and Perry Jones, executive director and pastor at the Capital City Rescue Mission, listen as Lisanne Forgione, outreach van supervisor for the Homeless Action Committee speaks about the Code Blue program during a press conference at the Capital City Rescue Mission in Albany on Friday.
J.S.CARRAS — THE RECORD

ALBANY >> When temperatures dip to under 10-degrees or if there’s a foot of snow on the ground, some area organizations pooled the resources to issue a Code Blue to get people who are living on the streets into a warm environment.

“We don’t want anyone to freeze to death on those cold nights,” said Perry Jones, executive director of the Capital City Rescue Mission on South Pearl Street in Albany. The mission has partnered with St. Peter’s Episcopal Church to house anyone who needs a place to stay while the weather is particularly inclement.

Jones said that they have enough mats and beds to sleep about 220 people, which has happened in the past.

Over the past three years, the Code Blue initiative has housed a maximum of 589 people. This is the fourth year the program is being offered in the Albany area, said Liz Hitt with the Homeless and Travelers Aid Society.

“We need to get people safe,” she said.

The program, Jones said, was started in Buffalo.

To transport people to the local rescue mission, CDTA is offering free bus rides and other assitance. Advantage Transit Group is also offering free rides.

Once at the 259 S. Pearl St. site, people who prefer to keep their information private will not need to provide their name or any other information.

In the past, CDTA was able to provide a small van for a family who needed transportation, said Jones.

Hitt noted that last year was tough since there were streaks of multiple days with extremely cold weather. Since the City Mission is privately funded, it is able to expand and contract depending on the demand, while publicly funded sites have a limit to the number of people they can house, she said.

A Code Blue kick off event was held Friday and the program can be used through March 15.

Other partners in the Code Blue initiative include the Albany Fire Department, the American Red Cross, the Council of Churches Overflow Seasonal Shelter, and the county Department of Social Services’ Homeless Services Team Homeless Action Committee.

When the temperature, including wind chill, is under 10 degrees, an email is sent out to these partners to notify them about the Code Blue alert.

Donations of coats and other winter attire are needed, along with monetary donations.

Both can be specified for the Code Blue program and sent to: Capital City Rescue Mission, 259 South Pearl St. Albany, NY 12202.